Petra Martic vs. Saisai Zheng – Prediction (25.10.2019)

Preview and players comparison.

The pair are meeting for the first time. Though Martic is the favorite, she has the added pressure of the games win-loss. She holds an 11-5 career record against Chinese players, including winning the last three encounters. Even if she drops the match, Zheng may have the final laugh with her biggest semifinal appearance.

Saisai Zheng pulled off a shocker on Tuesday after upsetting third seed Madison Keys, 6-4, 6-2, in 91 minutes. She broke the former US Open finalist six times to score her third win of the year over the top 20 players. Not too long ago, she was an eleven-match losing run against such opponents, going back to May 2017. Zheng is bidding her seventh career tour-level semifinal appearance and second of the season. Little less than three months ago, the Chinese player won her maiden career title in San Jose, upsetting Amanda Anisimova and Aryna Sabalenka en route. It is her only final-four showing above the International level.

Petra Martic still seeks her first win since the top 20 debut, as she opened the week with a 6-3, 6-4 defeat to Madison Keys. She held up a decent first-serve winning percentage of 71% during the 70-minute match. The Croat entered Zhuhai with a fierce momentum, winning 31 matches in twelve outings since April. Furthermore, earlier in this Asian swing, Martic also entered her maiden Premier-level final and a Premier-5 quarterfinal at the Chinese cities of Zhengzhou and Wuhan, exiting to Ka. Pliskova and Barty, respectively. The 28-year-old, who had never entered the top 40 rankings until last year, has now risen to 15th place.

During her only previous appearance in the tournament, in 2015, Zheng went 0-2 in the round-robin matches; lost to Keys, V. Williams. She now stands seven games away from entering the Zhuhai semifinal. Martic, on the other hand, has to win this match without dropping six or more games, a mightily tough ask.

Match Info and Live Scores.